


At Home

by Kiwi1018



Series: When TROS Breaks Your Heart... [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Ahch-To, Ahch-To antics, And Star Wars sequel trilogy call-outs, And lots of conversation, Ben Solo Deserved Better, Ben Solo Gets a Hug, Bendemption, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force Dyad (Star Wars), Happily Ever After, Honestly its mostly fluff, Okay there’s lots of hugging, POV Ben Solo, POV Rey (Star Wars), Post-Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Redeemed Ben Solo, Rey Gets A Hug, Reylo - Freeform, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Fix-It, The Force Ships It, porgs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-30
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:20:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26180287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiwi1018/pseuds/Kiwi1018
Summary: Rey and Ben Solo (who most definitely did NOT die on Exegol) are finally reunited in person on Ahch-To, where they say farewell to the island where they fell in love, and prepare to venture out into the galaxy to find their new home, together._________
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: When TROS Breaks Your Heart... [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1761187
Comments: 57
Kudos: 78
Collections: TROS Reylo Fix-it Fics, The Rise of Skywalker: Fix-It Fic Edition





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the third and final (?) part of my Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker fix-it series, When TROS Breaks Your Heart (which I now wish I'd given a cooler and less meta name...) It takes place shortly after the last chapter but before the epilogue of part 1, A Little More Conversation, and several months before part 2, For Her Sake. So, yes, in Star Wars lingo, this is a prequel to the sequel. Thanks so much for joining me!!

From the air it looked exactly the same, and Rey marveled at how some things in the universe could escape change, even as she laughed at herself for expecting anything different. It had stood for a thousand generations, what was one more year? But _she’d_ changed so much since the first time she saw it, her life and all that she knew, it was hard to imagine that anything in the galaxy could have remained untouched.

Though one thing on Ahch-To _had_ changed, she saw, as the _Millennium Falcon_ rounded the south end of the island, headed for the makeshift landing pad: someone was parked in her spot. An aged TIE fighter, to be exact, late-Empire, glistening with a crust of dried salt spray. She smiled, almost giddy at the sight. She’d last seen the little scout ship on Exegol, a year ago...

_Helping Ben climb in, his leg almost useless, both of them exhausted, in so much pain, but never before so... complete. Knowing they had finally found each other, even with no idea when they’d see each other again. And then, finally seated in the old T-65 X-wing, running her own launch procedures, distracted at watching him gain altitude, she’d been newly aware of the hollow in her heart as the distance between them increased..._

How impossible _this_ had seemed, then.

Rey thought back to her first glimpse of this island, astounded now by her own bravery, her _audacity,_ how she’d flown across the galaxy with a Wookiee she just met for people she hardly knew, for a cause she had no stake in. But when Ben ( _because he would_ always _be Ben to her now, even then, even in memory..._ ) had entered her mind, had tried to break down her barriers and instead awakened that _force_ inside her that had always been there, that she’d hidden away...

She’d known then... she was on the precipice of something more. Something bigger, finally, than marking the days of her own survival. The belonging she’d sought, her _purpose_... it was ahead of her. And so she’d left her past behind, buried it with the wreckage in the sands of Jakku, to stretch toward a new hope. A new home. And she’d found it... in the most unexpected place.

It wasn’t nearly so clear at the time. When they’d faced each other across the hearth, both finally _listening_ , finally _hearing_ , while the rush of the wind and the chill damp of the sea had entwined around her like a shroud, mingling with the _disappointment_... the _loneliness_ like nothing she’d ever felt in all those solitary years in the desert... until all of it burned away, immolated by that spark of live-wire electricity that had coursed through her at the brush of his fingertips, such _warmth_ crossing the light-years between them to find her, in that moment, to show her what they could be, _together_...

To lead them home. To bring them both here, now.

_Again._

_Finally._

______________________________

Rey did manage to fit the _Falcon_ on the stone outcropping without nudging the TIE into the sea, although she supposed he ( _they!_ ) wouldn’t need it anymore anyway. A heady wave of joy washed over her, giddy again, as she stretched to reach the controls for the landing gear. This would be the last time she’d fly the _Falcon_ without a co-pilot.

She stood to exit the cockpit, then froze, hand hovering over the ramp release, suddenly nervous. Should she have worn something nicer? Done her hair differently? When was the last time she showered?

_What if I’ve changed?_  
_What if he’s changed?_  
_What if everything is different now?_

_What’s taking you so long?_ Ben’s deep voice rang in her head, all fond impatience, as a thrum that echoed her own nervous anticipation radiated through their bond.

 _Nothing. Coming._ She couldn’t suppress her glee, knowing he was there, _right there,_ not just a voice, a vision, but right outside the—

 _Good. I was afraid maybe the ramp was broken. It’d be just like this hunk of junk to haul you all the way here and then not let you out,_ he grumbled. She grinned, knowing his irritation was a facade. He was unsettled, that was all, at the sight of his father’s ship.

 _She’s in tip-top shape,_ Rey replied primly. _I’ve been taking very good care of her._ She grabbed her rain poncho, and finally slapped the ramp release on her way out the door.

 _Mmhmm,_ he hummed absently as the ramp descended, and how _comforting_ was the familiar clanking and creaking and hiss of hydraulics.

She jumped off the end of the ramp just before it hit the ground, and stopped. Ben stood before her, several paces away, his expression guarded. He looked the same: tall and broad and lean, his angular features ruddy from the wind and sun, the falling mist sparkling against his dark hair like specks of clearest kyber. But she’d been right... everything was different.

_____________________________

Ben Solo had arrived on Ahch-To battered and broken in body, but never so certain in spirit. He’d done it, turned away from the Dark Side, regained the Light. Found himself again, found he _did_ have the strength, found that his family hadn’t given up on him, even after everything. And he’d found Rey.

 _I’ll help you_ , she’d said, such _faith_ , and how he’d _doubted_ , scoffed even as she drew him in with those unfathomable eyes, and why such goodness, such light, would want anything to do with him, would see anything worth saving, he couldn’t imagine. Why hadn’t he believed, then, why hadn’t he _seen_ her... seen himself sooner? But in the end, it had been enough. Her faith in him had saved them both.

And now she was here, standing before him, smiling at him as she had on Exegol, when he’d opened his eyes to find her _alive_ in his arms. As though she was _glad_ to be back on this miserable, soggy planet on the edge of the Unknown Regions. When she was free to be anywhere in the galaxy, doing anything... she’d come to him.

 _I love you_ , his heart beat out over and over as he watched her step off his father’s ship, and he _longed_ to hold her, to shelter her against the wind and the rain that pelted her now on this miserable rock of his exile, as she had sheltered him against the Dark and the doubt during his long year here. He swallowed over the fear in his throat, gathering himself to overcome this last hurdle. To step forward in faith. To finally go home.

__________________________

Rey approached slowly, the smile on her face an offering, freely given, even as Ben remained almost impassive. But she knew better, now, knew all of his masks, and her smile stretched into a grin.

“Hi,” she said, stopping an arm’s length away. Her arms, not his.

“Hi,” he returned solemnly, his eyes locked hers. “You’re really here.”

“I’m really here,” she echoed softly.

“I really want to kiss you,” he said, still so solemn that her heart melted all over again.

“Okay,” she breathed. “Me too.”

“I mean, I really, really want to.” And though his eyes flitted like butterflies across her face before settling back to rest on her gaze, he didn’t move.

“Ben...” she scrunched her nose at him and laughed, filled with anticipation, such _warmth_ , and it wasn’t as if they hadn’t kissed before, but somehow, now...

“Honestly,” he shrugged, “I really haven’t been able to think about much else, since you told me you were coming... But I’m afraid that once I start, I won’t want to stop, ever, and we’ll be stuck standing here in the wind and the rain for the rest of our lives, and I really want to get off this rock, it’s too kriffing cold here, there’s so much I want to do with you-“

She took one long step forward, rose up on her toes, and brought her lips to meet his, finally cutting off whatever else he was going to say. Finally getting to the point.

His arms went around her like instinct as he grinned against her kiss, _you’re really here,_ and she almost laughed, torn between pulling back, to see that unexpected smile she would never tire of, or leaning in to _press on_ , until he decided for her, wrapping a possessive arm around her waist as his other hand slid up to her neck, his fingers tangling in the wisps of hair already curling in the sea-soaked breeze. Everything, the wind, the rain, even the beams of watery sunlight fell still as the Force _hummed_ between them, until there was only this, the soft scrape of his calloused fingers against the nape of her neck, his breath warm as he sighed against her, his grin giving way to an _urgency_ , a single-minded focus on the task at hand. She curled her hands at his chin, her fingers grazing lightly along his jaw, and pressed her whole body to his, all angles and curves, soft and firm and _oh_ , how they fit together, like they’d been carved of the same stone, _two that are one,_ he’d said, so long ago, another life, another name, but always, _always_ them.

When Ben finally pulled back to look at her his hands settled on her hips, his thumbs rubbing soft circles against the worn linen, and his eyes were dark and full and near to overflowing with all the promise of things to come. She thought for a moment she might drown in them. Willingly. Gladly.

He took a slow, deliberate breath. “Yeah,” he nodded, as though coming to terms with something significant, inevitable. “That’s pretty much what I was afraid of. At least you like the rain,” he sighed ruefully, stooping slightly to bring his mouth back to hers.

“Ben,” she laughed, leaning her forehead against his chin, catching her breath, tracing his jaw lightly with one hand, as the other threaded through the hair at the back of his neck. “We’ve got plenty of time,” she said quietly. “All the time we want.”

“Yeah.” His voice was rough, hoarse with the wind and the waiting, and his hands wrapped around her back, pulling her close again. She leaned her head against his chest, enveloped in his arms, his warmth, sweet and safe and _home_ , and she felt more than heard as his voice rumbled through her ear.

“Yeah we do.”

_______________________

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I started writing in this world to find healing after TROS, and continuing in it since has carried me through these crazy pandemic times. THANK YOU SO MUCH to everyone who’s joined me, it’s been a joy to me and it’s such a treat to hear when other people enjoy it too.


	2. Chapter 2

Ben bent to kiss her again, gently this time, less grasping urgency now, more of a _welcoming_ , soft and supple, a homecoming... that was broken suddenly by a cacophonous _squawk,_ followed by a firm thud against Rey’s right calf. She looked down, startled to see a rather large porg staring up at her with unmistakably indignant eyes.

“Hello there,” she said, amused, twisting in Ben’s arms for a better look at the piqued little bird. “What could I possibly have done to offend you already? I just got here!”

A trilling _chiirrup_ erupted, surprisingly loud from such an insubstantial beak, and Ben cleared his throat, abashed. “It’s possible...” he pursed his lips into a frown, “that he’s jealous. We’ve been spending a lot of time together... lately.”

“Oh really,” she looked up at him slyly. “You made a friend, hmm?”

“Well,” Ben ran a hand through his hair, looking away, as if there were any way he could hide his embarrassment from _her_. “Nights are cold here... I don’t know what happened to his nest mates, but he was following me around, and...” he shrugged, helpless yet again against the truth.

She laughed now, thoroughly enchanted, and bent down, extending a hand to the bird. “Well little one, my apologies...” she looked up at Ben, expectantly. “What’s his name?”

“His name...” Ben groaned, looking up into the gray sky for a moment. “I don’t...” he hesitated. Finally he looked down and shrugged at the little bird, defeated. “I call him Gus. It’s short for Augustus,” he said defensively. “A tribute to his rather venerable nature... for a porg...” he trailed off. “Right.”

Rey grinned. She hadn’t thought it possible that this situation could get any more delightful. “Right then. Well, _Gus_ , I’m sorry to break it to you, but I’m stealing him away. You’ll have to find a... nest mate...” she giggled, “more your own size.”

Gus eyed her warily and took a single hop backward, as if seeking a better vantage point from which to appraise his rival. She extended her hand again, and Gus tolerated a light stroke of his head feathers before hopping back out of range, still eyeing her suspiciously.

“I’m sorry,” she said again with a shrug. “And before you ask, no. You can’t come with him.” At this Gus _chirupped_ again, even louder than before, clear offense radiating through his innocent black eyes.

“But,” she offered, “I might be able to help you out. I’ve got a box of your cousins to return,” she gestured back toward the _Falcon_. “I cleaned them all out after Chewie left. Can’t have your relations invading the galaxy... cute though you may be.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to keep them?” Ben asked innocently. “We could raise them for meat.” She swatted him gently. “Or pets!” He hastened to add. “Whatever. Maybe the kids would like them.”

“Ben...” she blushed, turning her eyes away, “don't get ahead of yourself.”

“I meant the students.” He smiled down at her, eyes warm but full of mischief. “Remember, the school? The students.” His voice dropped as he pulled her in again, Gus forgotten. “Hey, this was your idea, if it were up to me I’d keep you all to myself... spend the next few years just cruising around the galaxy...”

A furrow crossed her brow as she put her palms to his chest, lightly, but intentionally. “Ben. You don’t mean that, do you?” Doubt crept into her voice. “I can’t do this if you’re not... I don’t want to be dragging you along on my dream. You do have a right to your own life, finally.”

Ben smiled gently, but his eyes remained sober. “You’re not. This _is_ my choice. I choose you.” He brought a hand to her face, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes, a losing battle in the wind. “And I’m with you. I do want to do this. I have... debts to pay.”

“Ben,” she said gently. “Let’s think of it more like... wisdom to share.”

He nodded, watching her closely, his eyes intense. “Okay. Right. Just... keep reminding me.”

Rey sighed then, leaning her head briefly on his chest, overcome with joy, with relief. “We’re really doing this,” she said in awe. “We’re going to be together. We’re going to...”

“Get married.” Ben supplied. “First things first. If you still want to?” He added gently.

She nodded, solemn. “I do. I don’t really know anything about marriage or weddings, I don’t even care. I just want to be with you. So if it’s important to you, it’s important to me.”

“Good. It is.” He said, brushing a soft kiss to her forehead.

She shivered as his hands found the small of her back, holding her close. His desires rang loud and clear through their bond, sparking her own, and she laughed with just a tinge of nerves.

“I don’t suppose the Caretakers have an officiant they could loan us?” She asked, surprised at the breathlessness in her own voice, the sudden wave of _need_ for things she could hardly name.

“Ha!” Ben murmured against her temple. “I see beneath your feigned indifference you’re as eager as I am.”

She shook her head against his chest, but couldn’t muster the words. “Don’t worry,” he soothed. “I’ve got some ideas for our... wedding.” He cleared his throat. “For later. Not here.”

“But,” he said, loosening his hold but keeping her in his arms, “now that you mention it, they did invite us to dinner.”

“What?” Rey was shocked, immediately suspicious. “They don’t like me, remember?”

“Hm,” he huffed, “I still can’t imagine what you could have done, they’ve been more than amicable with me... but... I told them I’d be leaving and they want to send me off. Us,” he amended, and she wondered how much he’d told them about the circumstances of his departure.

“You can talk to them?” she asked curiously. She hadn’t been on the island long enough to really try.

“Some,” he conceded, and she smiled, already knowing by his modesty that this was probably an understatement. “They understand more than they let on, and I’ve picked up enough words to get by,” he shrugged. “It’s not their monthly Gathering. But they want to celebrate. I think they’re going to miss me,” he said smugly.

“Really...? Well, isn’t that sweet.”

“Is that so surprising?” He asked in mock indignation. “I’ve helped them with some projects. I’m good muscle, apparently.”

“Apparently,” she said wryly, giving the arm she was holding a squeeze.

He coughed slightly and his cheeks turned red. Taking pity on him, she looked away, out over the sea.

“Well,” she said after a moment, “they’ve taken good care of you. I suppose it would be polite to thank them. It’s tonight?”

He nodded. “I wasn’t sure, when you’d want to leave...” his arms around her tensed, his hands sliding up her back. He lowered his head, and his voice was low and warm and rich against her ear. “But if you don’t mind, I was... hoping we could stay tonight. One last night here. Together.”

She nodded, suddenly breathless, and absolutely refused to put why or words to the heat that flooded her own cheeks.

_____________________________

“We’ve got some work to do then, if we’ve got plans tonight. Let’s start with unloading the porgs,” Rey said, taking Ben’s arm, turning him back toward the _Falcon_. “I’ll be glad to have them returned to their rightful home. Much too much fluff in the wiring, clogging the conduits.”

But when they reached the ramp Ben stopped, and Rey paused alongside him. “When was the last time you were inside?” She asked gently, her hand still tucked tightly in the crook of his arm.

“Starkiller,” Ben said quietly.

“What? When?” Rey asked, surprised.

He stood quietly a long moment. So many choices in his past, so many memories that he had accepted but was still not at peace with. Might never be at peace with...

 _Crimson sky lit by a fading star, crackling hum of a scarlet saber..._ and that one pure moment of clarity, of _certainty_ , wiped away by a rough hand on his face, an endless fall. Sacrificing his father to the Dark Side was only the greatest of his many, many regrets... but the resulting rend in his soul had let the Light in. His father had started him on the path home.

“I... sensed that... he was there, on the base.” Ben worked his jaw, suddenly regretting having opened this box. His sins were all connected, links in a chain stretching back farther than he could see. “It was... after you... escaped.” His voice hitched, the final word a verdict, confirming his condemnation, the truth threatening to sink him again, to drag him back into that abyss, full of everything that he deserved, _only_ what he deserved—

“Ben.” Rey’s voice was a golden bell ringing through the cavern of his memories as she brought her hand up to his face. “I forgive you.”

He forced his gaze to her. Her eyes on his were clear and certain, lighting the path, guiding him forward. His hand gripped hers against his elbow. _Inhale, exhale_. Her smile felt like absolution, her love like grace. It was enough, for now.

He nodded, swallowing. “Then I got a report, that... it had been found. And I went to check it out myself. I don’t know what I was looking for. I certainly wasn’t hoping to find... him. I suppose I just had to... see it for myself. See if anything had changed, perhaps. Or prove to myself that it didn’t matter to me. That I didn’t care. I was so... angry, then. There wasn’t room to feel much else.”

He stared at the _Falcon_ , lost for a moment in the past.

 _I know_ , Han had said, standing atop the wreckage on Kef Bir. _I know_. And for the first time in a long time, Ben had believed him.

He saw his father’s face in his mind, felt Rey’s hand on his arm, and tears filled his eyes. His greatest sorrow, his greatest joy, both had come to him on this junk-heap freighter.

He had never felt more grateful for it.

“Before that,” he continued, steadier now, “not since I left... with Luke. Honestly, I don’t remember the last time.” He sighed, sounding almost wistful. “I wish I did. I wish I’d marked it in my memory. If I’d known it was the last time...” Then he shrugged. “But it wasn’t the last time. Here we are. So, let’s go.” And he stepped onto the ramp.

_________________________

Walking slowly, almost cautiously down the corridor, Ben paused, hand pressed against the frame, fingers splayed across the dingy bulkhead. “Han is.... everywhere.” He sounded surprised. “Everywhere.”

Rey nodded. “I feel it too. Every time. It’s as it should be.” She took his hand, entwining her fingers between his. “You being here, is as it should be.”

“Yeah.” Relief flooded his veins, erupting in a smile on his face. “Yeah,” he repeated, because whatever he’d expected to feel, feared would happen when he stepped inside his father’s ship... this wasn’t it. Such _welcome_... such _belonging_. He continued slowly down the corridor, still trailing his fingers along the faded upholstery. It felt just like it did when he was a child... interwoven threads of excitement, adventure... deliciously forbidden possibilities...

“Strange though... I don’t feel my... mother here. Maybe not surprising,” he conceded. “She loved my father, not his ship. And she had her own, once the Republic got up and running.”

Ben paused when they reached the tiny kitchen. Rey sighed, peering into the cramped galley, and he watched her curiously. “We spent weeks living here, after Crait, feeding everyone out of this cupboard,” she explained.

“He had this added for her, as a wedding present,” Ben said quietly.

Rey looked up, intrigued. “She never mentioned that. The galley wasn’t original?”

“No. I don’t know what he and Chewie ate, all those years. Ration packs. Spacers food.”

“They got married impulsively, you know,” he offered, uncertain what his mother might have already told her. _You knew her better than I did, at the end._

“Why am I not surprised?” Rey said drolly, and he chuckled. Hearing the story as a pre-teen, in one of his parents’ rare moments of fond reminiscence, he’d honestly felt a bit indignant about the whole situation, the foolishness of the young. “On Endor, right after the second Death Star... burning bits of the thing still crashing down around them. Fitting,” he added wryly against Rey’s chiding smile.

“He thought once they were married,” Ben continued, “that it needed to be more... homelike. But they didn’t live here long. She got busy with the new government, and...” he frowned, “had me. I think he always... hoped. That she’d come back, put it all down for a while, fly around with him. Make this her home.” He shrugged. “I think she hoped he’d stay put for a while. They loved each other, but... they were always on different pages.”

 _Not always_ , Rey amended, her voice floating to him through the bond. _They both loved you_.

 _Hm_. He huffed.

“Anyway,” she added, before melancholy could overtake him again, “we will make good use of it. I’m done eating ration packs. We’re going to learn to cook,” she decided.

“We are?” he turned to her, intrigued.

“Mmhmm... Unless you already know,” she added, suddenly suspicious.

“Not really...” he admitted, then shrugged. “Well then. This really _is_ going to be an adventure.”

_____________________________


	3. Chapter 3

Ben lugged the crate of porgs, squawking and flapping, out of the _Falcon_ and set it on the rocky ground. Introducing them to Gus seemed fortuitous, at least so far as either of them were able to interpret porg behavior, as the whole flock hopped contentedly out of the crate, the elders shepherding the chicks, and waddled willingly after him up the hill.

“I was thinking,” Rey said, looking out across the cragged cliffs of the island, “that perhaps we should... clean up a little, before we leave? Around the island, I mean.”

 _Leave_... his heart stuttered at the thought, entangled in threads of excitement, apprehension, guilt. He felt, honestly, like he’d been granted some kind of parole. _I’m really going to leave. With her._

He frowned quizzically, following her gaze. “I’m not sure what you’re implying, Rey. I’m a naturally tidy person.”

She smiled, shaking her head. “I meant...” she gestured toward the ancient Imperial TIE, perched next to the _Falcon_. “We’re kind of... littering the island with TIE fighters.”

A memory flashed in his mind, her memory: _the stolen TIE Whisper, a blazing pyre of scorched metal, Rey pitching rocks into the flames, trying to burn her disappointment, kindle her hopes and dreams along with the ship._

“Ah.” He said, understanding. “Well, that one is already taken care of.”

“It is?” She asked, surprised.

He nodded. “Indeed. The Caretakers took what they could use.” He waved a hand in the direction of their village. “They’re a very industrious people. They have to be, living in an environment such as this. I still haven’t figured out where they build those boats,” he mused. “There’s no timber on this island to speak of, they must have other resources somewhere, but they’re quite good at using what’s available to the fullest. When we go down to the village, you can see what they’ve done with the solar panels, or what was left of them. Metal doesn’t burn, of course, but most of the wiring melted...”

He finally noticed the amusement radiating off her and stopped.

“What? You were a scavenger, you should understand that,” he said defensively.

“And you’re a scholar.” She looked up at him shyly, such adoration that his breath caught. “I forget that sometimes.”

He frowned to hide the grin that erupted from his heart. “And they had me throw the rest in the ocean,” he finished, nearly forgetting his point. “It wasn’t much.”

“Ah. Well then, if that’s all set. Perhaps we should leave the other one here... just in case?”

 _Just in case...?_ The words echoed in the sudden hollow of his heart. “In case what?” He asked warily, that old ache, that fear of being too much, being sent away, being—

“In case someday another stray Jedi should happen along and find it useful,” she said lightly, taking his hand, leading him back down the path. He took a deep breath, grounding himself. _This is real. She’s real._ “Ah.”

“It was lucky for us that Luke had that X-wing, when I needed it,” she added.

Ben shook his head. “That still makes no sense, how it was even air-tight, let alone flyable,” he grumbled.

“Are you complaining?” she asked indignantly. “It did the job. For a while, after, I tried to keep it up, keep it useable...” she shook her head sadly. “It was a lost cause. I didn’t want to admit it.” Then she brightened. “When Poe suggested putting it in a museum, I just knew Luke would roll his eyes at that! I had to agree!”

Ben barked a laugh, surprising himself. “Yeah. He’d hate that.”

“Exactly.” She giggled. “Anyway... it shouldn’t have worked. But it did. The Force works in mysterious ways. So, maybe... that one will help someone, someday. Help them find their way home. Like we did.”

He stopped then, turning to her, his face serious, his eyes dark. “I’ve felt more at home here... with you... than anywhere since I was a child.”

“Ah.” She said, considering. “Well, me too. Visiting you here this past year was my refuge...this is a special place. And...” she looked up at him shyly, “I fell in love here.”

“Yeah?” He hummed, peering down his nose at her, all feigned nonchalance.

“Yeah,” she echoed, moving toward him, equally casual, driving coherent thought further from his mind with each step. “So it will always hold a special place in my heart.”

“But, master scholar,” she looked up at him now from so close, too close, “you’re forgetting the operative word in that statement. Words,” she amended.

“I am?” He was barely even aware that she was still talking, registering little beyond her warm eyes, her soft breath, wisps of her wind-blown hair tickling his cheeks...

“ _With me,_ ” she said softly. “While this island certainly has its charms... you’re at home _with me._ ”

“Oh.” He breathed, lifting his free hand to smooth a stray lock behind her ear, cupping her jaw, his thumb lingering at her cheek.

“Yes. I am.”

___________________________  
  


“I haven’t had a real shower in a while,” Ben called down the corridor as he approached the cockpit. “But I’m pretty sure I could get better water pressure standing out in the rain.” Rey had proudly presented him with new clothes when they’re returned to the _Falcon_ , which he’d been honestly relieved to accept, but he’d insisted on washing up first.

“Oh, yes... that’s on the list of things to replace,” she called back. “Pretty far down, though, beneath about a dozen other things that keep us alive and in the air. We have a small stipend from the queen, it covers fuel and food...” Rey turned to see him enter, still drying his hair with a faded shop towel he’d found in a storage locker. She blinked, and a sudden warmth gathered in his stomach.

He half smiled, self-consciously pleased despite his best efforts to look smug, and at the flush of her cheeks the warmth spread from his stomach to tingle down his legs. Ben cleared his throat. “Still... maybe I can find a job, wherever we end up. Something to keep me out of trouble.”

“Out of trouble,” she scoffed, and he felt equal parts relieved and disappointed by the reprieve. “I should think the school full of untrained Force sensitive children would keep you occupied...”

“Ah yes. That’s right. I’ll have my hands full. And... I’m sure you’ll need some... attention too,” he teased.

“Ha.” She scrunched her nose at him, “If you’re lucky. Oh!” She exclaimed then, remembering. “I have something for you.” She reached over to her satchel, slung across the back of the seat. “From Chewie.”

She handed him a small worn leather pouch, carefully hand stitched. Ben opened it, and tipped onto his palm a data stick and unmarked credit chip.

“Chewie shouldn’t be sending me money,” Ben said, troubled... he already had more debts than he could ever repay...

“Actually, it’s from... Lando?” Rey said, obviously not questioning the origin, but rather his reaction to it. “I guess Chewie told him about... you,” she waved her hand, indicating, he supposed, his continued existence. “And he passed that along.”

Ben felt a mix of curiosity and apprehension, but the curiosity won as he sat down and popped the data stick into the auxiliary console. A short message, all text, appeared on the screen, and Ben read quietly for several moments, then sat back, stunned, overwhelmed by the... love, the generosity of his... family. _Again_.

“Well. I guess that solves the problem of the new shower head.” He swallowed, trying to hide his discomfort. “He left me some...” He gestured, somewhat helplessly, toward the message, inviting Rey to lean over. She scanned the text quickly but was clearly distracted by the excessively large number toward the bottom of the screen.

“Um, I think the decimal mark is in the wrong place,” she said. “Numbers that large don’t actually exist.”

He had to chuckle at that. “They do for Lando, sweetheart.”

She was still staring at the screen. “And he’s just giving it to you?”

He gestured again toward the screen, and she leaned in to read the message more carefully this time.

_Ben,_

_I’ll admit I was shocked when Chewbacca told me you had returned, but not surprised. You Solos always were survivors. I’m sure it’s quite a story. Maybe someday you’ll stop by and fill me in on the details. I’m currently traveling, a personal project I’m working on, but you can always leave a message for me with the current administrator on Bespin._

_On the day you were born, I made some investments in your name. Seemed like an auspicious beginning, Galactic Concordance Day coinciding with a new Solo. After you disappeared, I didn’t have the heart to liquidate the account. In light of your current situation, as relayed to me by the mighty and unerringly faithful Chewbacca, I took the liberty of withdrawing the funds, deducting for myself a reasonable retainers fee, of course, and asked him to pass it along._

_Take care of yourself, Little Starfighter. And the lovely Lady Rey (another story I hope to hear in modest detail, someday). And my ship._

_L.C._

Ben rubbed the back of his neck, frowning, lost in thought, in memories. “Huh.”

After a long moment, he spoke. “Well. That’ll cover the wedding, and the honeymoon.” He declared decisively. “Naboo it is.”

“Naboo?” Rey was surprised, but clearly pleased. “I hear it’s lovely...”

“Sure,” he said casually. “Nicest planet in the galaxy, by human standards. Perfect place for a... secret wedding.” He glanced at her, realizing... “Oh. Sorry. Maybe that’s not a good idea.”

“Why not?” She asked, cautious now.

“It was...” he sighed, running a hand through his damp hair. “It was where my grandparents were married,” he confessed. “Anakin and Padme. It was her home, when she and Anakin...” he frowned, reluctant now to continue. _Bad idea, Solo_. “And... it was Palpatine’s home, too,” Ben finally added quietly.

“Oh.” The seat creaked as Rey leaned back, considering. “Right.”

He sat in silence, focusing his eyes on Lando’s message. Rey’s side of their bond was quiet, though the feeling was more of purposeful containment than peace, but he didn’t press her.

“So, is this a Darth Vader thing?” She asked finally. Her tone was light, but wisps of concern seeped through the bond.

“No.” He said, quickly, decisively. He turned toward her, took her hand in his. “No. It’s a beautiful planet, and they don’t require identification from off-worlders, which makes it a convenient spot for us...” he trailed off, tightening his fingers around hers. Then, “Alright, maybe it is.” he conceded. “But not like that,” he added quickly.

He worked his jaw, composing his thoughts. “My mother took me there, once.” He said finally. “It was a diplomatic trip, I was... I don’t know. Young. It was before I went to Luke. I didn’t know, at the time, about... Vader. But she had arranged for personal visits to some of the private royal sites... and she was so sad, and so angry... the whole time we were there. I didn’t understand why. She hid it, of course,” he waved a dismissive hand, “from everyone but me. She tried, not that she could have. But... it shook me.” He turned to Rey to find her watching him softly, and he smiled into her eyes. “You know her, so... pragmatic. She never spent long wishing things were different than they were.” He almost rolled his eyes, and was relieved when Rey finally smiled. “But we spent several days, touring around the capital, and the Lake Country and I think... I think she was imagining her mother, and maybe even... how things could have been. Maybe even seeing it, through the Force, I don’t know, but maybe just... wishing.”

Rey squeezed his hand.

“So, in addition to it being a lovely planet and logistically reasonable option, maybe it’s like... a do-over. We can finish what they started, but we can do it right. If you want to. I honestly didn’t really think about the... Palpatine part.”

Rey didn’t respond immediately, her gaze far away, and he didn’t pry, though he watched her carefully. “We can do something else,” he finally said into the silence, rubbing his thumb against her fingers, still laced through his. “It was a bad idea, there’s plenty of nice places in the galaxy-“

She turned to him then, a smile on her face, and her eyes were sincere. “No.” She shook her head. “We’ve both agreed not to fear who we are, where we come from. Whoever he was... he means nothing to me. He has nothing to do with me. And your idea about... your family... it’s sweet.” She smiled up at him, teasing again. “Very sweet. And fitting. And... I have always wanted to go there,” she confessed shyly.

“Okay,” a grin broke out on his face that he didn’t even try to contain. “Okay. Good. Great.”

_____________________

“So.” Ben said, pulling his mind from the future, returning to the present. “What’re you looking at?”

She turned back to the main console. “It’s a section of a...” she trailed off... “um...navigational chart...” She kept her eyes on the screen, but he could see the scrunch of her nose, as if deciding whether to wince or chuckle.

He shook his head. The asteroid field of their past was always present.

 _It’s a BB unit with a selenium drive..._ He remembered every moment of that day, every word. The fear, the awe, and he’d never met anyone like her, never dreamed he ever would, how could he have known?

 _How brave you were,_ he thought to her fondly, falling into the refuge of formality, glad for a moment that her head was turned. He felt her smile, gentle affection washing over him in a wave, but she didn’t turn, seemed to agree that something about this was easier to say though their bond, the place where they always knew each other, always understood.

 _How_ young _you were,_ she returned, with that spunk, that spark that never failed to render him awed and slightly breathless... _I was so surprised, when you took off the mask..._ She shrugged, still facing away from him. _Not the monster I was expecting._

How she could have seen _anything but_ a monster in him then still amazed him. “Well...” he said stiffly, after a silence, “I have always been interested in astronavigation.”

She turned to him then, her eyes warm, clearly amused, and his heart skipped in relief. He would always be asking her for grace, he knew, and would always be in awe of how easily she bestowed it. They would chart the path forward together. They had before, and they would again.

She turned back to the map. “Queen Sidra gave us a list of possible sites in their system, for the school.” She gestured toward the glowing projection. “Or whatever we’re gong to call it,” she glanced at him again, her voice firm. “Certainly not a temple.”

He nodded in agreement. “School is good.”

“So, I thought we’d visit them all, check them out. Several have preexisting buildings that we could use, some are just open space, where we could build...”

He leaned in close, squinting at the holo, the recommended sites marked as red dots on the projected map. “Get up,” he said, not unkindly, but certainly a command, his focus still on the map.

She rose as requested, eyeing him suspiciously. He slid behind her and plopped down in the seat she’d just vacated.

She scoffed. “Really?” But before she could protest further he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into his lap, her back snug against his chest.

“Much better.” He nuzzled into her neck, his arms tightening around her, keeping her close. His lips brushed her jaw, and she shivered at his breath in her ear.

“Ben,” she protested, dragging his name out in a long note of reluctance, though it was more of a sigh than a complaint, and he would never get enough of hearing his name in her voice.

“You saw this in a vision, right, us together, sharing a throne...?” His half smile was smug, mischievous, as he brushed soft kisses along her cheek, her jaw, the map forgotten. “Is this not regal enough for you, my lady?”

She laughed then, slightly breathless, and he whispered, “But it’s so much better this way, isn’t it?”

“It is,” she sighed. “But...

“Mmhmm...” he hummed against her cheek. “Do you want to get up?” He paused in his ministrations, craning his neck just enough to look into her eyes, loosening his arms to allow her to stand.

“No.” She leaned back into him, placing her own hands on his where they held her, wrapping herself back into him.

“Good,” he said contentedly. “I’ve... waited so long for this. For you. Trust me, Rey. Please.”

“Okay. Yes. I do.”

“Good,” he said again. Resting his chin on her shoulder, he gestured with one hand toward the holo display, the other still tight around her waist. “Continue.”

______________________


	4. Chapter 4

As the first sun sank below the horizon and afternoon faded into evening, Ben led Rey by the hand up the path beyond the huts, over the saddle and down to the Caretakers’ Village. The rain had cleared, for now, and with the suns setting on one side of the crest and the moons rising on the other, they passed quickly and suddenly from day into twilight. Rey much enjoyed the view as she followed Ben down the steep trail: he looked dashing in his new gray tunic and slim black trousers, though still with his worn black cloak thrown over his shoulder. He’d been too long on this island to trust in a clear sky. He kept glancing back at her, always with the same half-smile, the same rush of relief, of satisfaction, flooding through their bond. Feelings and sensations ebbed and flowed easily between them now like tides, one to the other.

“What is it?” she asked finally, as he glanced at her yet again, then skipped a step as he tripped lightly over a half-buried rock.

His smile was slightly sheepish. “Just... so happy you’re here. Checking that you haven’t disappeared.”

She squeezed his hand where their fingers entwined. “Never.”

Rey marveled to herself, not for the first time, how easy it was between them, now. In spite of everything: their history, their challenges... it felt so right, being together. All those years alone, she was so accustomed to solitude that she didn’t even realize what she was missing. Now she could hardly remember what life was like without him.

“Ben,” she finally said, as they picked their way carefully down the rocky path in the dimming light, the sounds and scents of the village wafting over them on the evening winds. “Do you ever worry... that this was all too... easy?”

He stopped, turning to her with an incredulous look. “Easy? You mean...” he gestured between them. “What exactly about _this_ has been easy?”

She laughed, fond exasperation, and just a touch of embarrassment. “Not... this... but just... us. I’ve never done this before... been with another person, this long, this close... shouldn’t it be harder?”

“It’s the dyad, Rey,” Ben stepped closer, taking her other hand in his, his thumbs rubbing gently over hers. They didn’t often name or parse the specifics of their bond, it’s origins or purpose. Rey knew Ben’s worry, that she resented it, being tied to him by destiny, a pawn of the Force as they’d both been played throughout their lives by so many others’ interests and intents... no matter how many times she assured him otherwise.

He looked at her closely now, his dark eyes deep, intense as the first time they’d met on this island, across the fire... both of them so afraid to be _seen_ , so desperate to be _known_.

“I’ve been waiting for you my whole life, Rey. Or, at least, your whole life. Didn’t I ever tell you...?” She shook her head, lost for words over the tightening of her heart.

“I knew you, when you were young... when _we_ were young,” he told her. “You were with me, so many times, in my mind... a light that kept me company on so many dark nights. You kept the Darkness out. I didn’t know it then, that it was you, but when we finally met...” he swallowed hard, but pressed on. “I remembered. It was you. And I couldn’t believe I’d forgotten. But I think that’s why it’s so easy, if you insist on naming it so... we’ve known each other our whole lives.”

Rey sighed as tears filled her eyes. If only she’d _remembered_. “I... I didn’t know that. I wish I could remember. You. Then. But it’s all... gone.”

“I think,” Ben offered gently, “when your parents... left you, you shut down, shut out the Force. That’s about the time when you left me, too.”

“Ben. I’m so sorry,” Rey said as the tears welled over. “If only I’d stayed with you, with the Force, I could have helped you, saved you, we could have—“

“No, Rey. Don’t.” Ben clasped their hands together against his chest, wrapping both of his around hers. “It saved you, from Palpatine. I’m sure of it,” he was fervent in his insistence. “If you’d stayed connected to the Force he would have found you sooner. And you wouldn’t have been strong enough to fight him, then. He would have had you.”

“Of course, you wouldn’t have shut down in the first place if your parents hadn’t been...” He frowned, brow furrowed, and Rey felt his sudden burst of anger, frustration sparking off him through the Force as his grip on her hands tightened. “What he stole from us...”

“Ben,” Rey said firmly, bringing their clasped hands to her chin, brushing her lips softly across their joined fingers. “Now you’re doing it. Don’t get caught up in what might have been. Maybe the Force joined us together because it knew, knew that we’d be... needed. Maybe without Palpatine we wouldn’t even be...” She shrugged. “Wouldn’t be here, now. Maybe the Force knew what was coming, knew what... we would need.”

Her smile was just for him as she gazed into his eyes, drawing him out, back to them, to _here_ , and _now_. The fading glow of sunset glinted gold in his hair, illuminating shards of amber in his eyes, and the Force hummed in contentment around them.

“Maybe.” Ben said dryly, blinking his way out of that infinite moment, coming back to her. “But I’m not thanking him, regardless.”

Rey laughed. “No. Me neither.” She dropped their hands, but kept one of hers in his as she turned back toward the path. “I don’t want to talk about him anymore. He’s stolen enough of our time. We have a party to get to.”

“Fair enough.” Ben agreed, letting her lead him down the path.

______________

The Caretakers greeted Ben with all the enthusiasm of a long-awaited son, and Rey with a gracious acceptance that was certainly warmer than she feared, though still spiked with a trace of suspicion. The celebration was not as elaborate as she remembered the Gatherings to be, but she and Ben were escorted to what was obviously a seat of honor, a long bench topped by a netted awning, adorned with shells and bones, dried flowers and seaweeds. The Matriarch made a speech, and though Rey understood none of it, and Ben offered no translation, it was apparently quite eloquent, if the rapt expressions and humming encouragements of the rest of the Caretakers were any indication. Then there was a bustle of activity, a cacophony of clucking and chirping, and soon Rey and Ben were presented with more food and drink than they could ever hope to consume in one sitting.

 _Do you understand them?_ Rey asked at one point, as yet another of the matronly Lanais stepped up, head bobbing, to hum and chirp and gesticulate at Ben, before giving Rey a curt nod and moving on.

“Mmm,” Ben hummed from behind his drinking gourd. “A bit.”

She eyed him suspiciously, until a waver in the bond gave him away. “No you don’t!” She smothered her laugh behind a spoonful of soup.

He huffed, caught out, but gathered his composure. “Not the words, per se, but the meaning is easy enough to discern. They have a latent Force sensitivity. Didn’t you notice?” He added loftily, trying to regain his dignity. “They project feelings, intentions, quite clearly, once you learn to look for it.”

“Oh.” Rey felt momentarily chastised. “Right. I hadn’t thought of that.” Ben glanced sideways at her, his gaze soft, as they were enveloped in the falling darkness, the flickering firelight, the warmth of friends.

__________

Eventually the food and tables were cleared away, and the music started. Rey was surprised to see that the Caretakers danced just as enthusiastically with each other as they did with the Visitors, sometimes in great collective circles with intricate, weaving steps, then breaking into comfortable pairs or trios. No one was left out, the musicians rotating in regularly, and when the Matriarch made it clear, with gestures and chirps, that Ben was to join them, he dragged Rey along with him.

Rey was self-conscious at first in the midst of such a boisterous gathering, but not for long, as the Lanais seemed to appreciate her effort and welcome her in. She tried to learn the steps, to pick up the patterns, but found herself mostly distracted watching Ben. He moved with a surprising grace, fluid and free, somehow always finding the beat, keeping time and step through the regular sifts in tempo where Rey found herself stumbling and starting. But his eyes were on her nearly every time she looked his way. The boyish joy she saw there was twinged with something... _intentional_ , a possessive sort of _heat_ , and the warmth that spread through her wasn’t just the exertion.

Rey suspected that the dancing would go on all night, but eventually Ben made his way to her and, taking her hand, pulled her with him to slip out of the fire-lit circle and into the darkness. It was a clear night, the stars so bright, so close, and Rey remembered that first time they’d danced together under the moons of Ahch-To, a connection made through their bond shortly after he’d arrived. So long ago.

Ben held tightly to her hand, drawing her close against him, and she realized he wasn’t leading her up, back to the huts, but down, toward the ocean. The moons were high over the summit of the mountain far above them; the lunar light bright enough to cast faint shadows on the path that stretched before them.

They came to a stop at a stone dock, an ancient jetty jutting out into the dark sea. The waves were calm, roiling away into the night, glittering with moonlight and star shine.

Ben tucked her under his arm as they watched the waves. “I thought you might like to see it, up close, one last time,” he finally said into the silence.

Rey nodded, agreeing, then realized. “Or, you might want to,” she said, softly. “One last time.”

He nodded then, looking out over the water. She clasped his hand tightly, curling into him. He was quiet, pensive, and an air of nervousness shimmered off him. Finally he spoke again, his voice barely audible over the rush of the wind and the swish of the sea against the rocks.

“And also, it’s possible...” he paused. “That I’m not sure what to do next.” He looked at her now, his eyes as deep and dark as the sea that stretched before them, father than she could see, almost further than she could even imagine. “Rey... I’m afraid,” he confessed quietly. “To leave here.” His stark honesty brought a lump to her throat.

“Why?” Her question was a breath on the breeze as she brought her hand up to brush a wind-whipped lock of hair out of his eyes, pressing her palm to his cheek.

“Hm.” He grunted. “I’ve been... safe here, I think. There’s not been anyone, or anything, I could... hurt, really. Besides myself. Nothing I could... damage. Going out, going back,” he huffed a laugh. “I’m not sure what to do. Who to be. What if something goes... wrong? What if I’m... unfit for polite society?” He said airily, and Rey wondered with an ache if it was a phrase he had heard in childhood, whispered behind closed doors.

She wrapped her arm around his back, sliding under his cloak. “You are, Ben.” She said simply. “You’re exactly who you should be. And exactly who I need. And sure, things might be rough, for a while. But... I’ll be with you. I’ll help you,” she added with a sly grin. “We’ll take it one step at a time. Together.”

He nodded slowly, and she felt him relax, breathe in her words and her sincerity and the truth, and let it settle in his heart. In his part of their soul.

“Okay,” he said finally, looking down at her again with that half smile that still made her heart leap, and he was so _handsome_ , his sharp lines and smooth planes bathed so _soft_ in the silver moonglow, and yet so _solid_ —

“So, what is the next step?” He asked slowly.

“Well...” and now she felt a flutter of nerves. _What does come next? What now?_ It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought about it, of course she had, but they’d agreed to go slow, and he’d wanted to wait, until they were really together, until they could really _be_ together... and now they were.

“Um... it’s rather late... I guess we should,” she swallowed, “sleep?”

“Right.” He took a deep breath. “That’s... customary. At night.”

She nodded. “Right.” But neither of them moved.

Then Ben turned suddenly, wrapping her in his arms, holding her tightly against his chest. She could barely catch her breath, enveloped by his solid warmth, his scent of sun-kissed saltwater. Her cheek pressed against the smooth fabric of his new tunic as the wind wrapped her in his old cloak, the same cloak she’d given him, passed though the miracle of their bond, the first time they met here on this island after Exegol, when everything was so new, _he_ was so new, and everything between them was unknown but bursting with _belonging_ and _promise_ and _possibility_.

“Rey,” he said finally, his voice muffled but firm as he pressed his lips to her hair, her ear to his chest, and he spoke with his heart as they were wrapped in all the _love_ and _gratitude_ and _hope_ that had grown between them, and she was sure it must be tangible, _luminous_ in the air around them.

“You are so precious to me.” His words flowed like healing into her heart, filling in her broken places, soldering the cracks and hollows of a life lived alone, _waiting_ and _wanting_ , for so long. “You’re everything I never thought I’d have... this life, with you... I want to give you everything. I want to show you what you mean to me, every day, what you’re worth, what you deserve. _Everything_.” His arms around her slid lower, down her back, and his large, firm hands spanned her waist, rippling shivers along her body that had nothing to do with the chilled air. He squeezed her tight, then pulled back, a soft smile on his face, a teasing confidence in his voice, and his eyes glinted like moonlight off the sea.

“So. I’m going to kiss you. Once. Here, now. And then I’m going to take you back to that cold, drafty hut where I’ve eked out my meager existence this past year, and wrap you up in my threadbare blanket and hold you tight on the miserable stone bench that’s hardly a bed but must have surely counted for _some_ sort of penance...” the aggrieved grumble in his voice made her smile. “I want to wake up here, one more time, and see you beside me, and know that this time, you’re not going to leave me. And then,” he startled her when he flung his arms wide, his cloak flapping open like soaring wings, and tipped his head to the sky, declaring to the wind and the stars and the heavens beyond, “WE WILL FLY OUT OF HERE!”

He turned back to her, such joy on his face, such hope, and took her hands again. “And not look back,” he said, softer now, “and when we get to Naboo we will get married, and then we will find the largest, softest bed that that ridiculously soft planet has to offer, and then...” he leaned into her, and his deep voice in her ear was warm and hot and sweet, and it resonated in her bones, in her soul. “And then... finally then, we’ll have _everything_. Together.” He bent closer, grazing his cheek softly against hers, his lips just brushing her neck, finding a spot under her ear that she’d never been aware of before but would now never forget. “Okay?” He hummed against her skin, his hands tightening on her back, shifting her against him, already they fit together so well, so right...

“Mmhmm,” She breathed across his ear, clinging to him, her knees weak. “Perfect. Sounds perfect.”

He chuckled, another rumble that she felt in her heart, and brought his hands lightly to her waist, grounding her, or perhaps himself, at a chaste distance, and she matched him, placing her hands lightly on the slim jut of his hips, solid and strong beneath his soft woolen tunic. They met in a kiss, soft and warm against the chill of starlight. She sighed lightly into him, prepared to pull away, until he _groaned_ , low and involuntary, and it was an invitation she couldn’t resist. She stepped into him, her hands sliding almost of their own accord up his sides to the broad plane of his chest, and her fingers fluttered soft as butterfly wings around his neck, his jaw, his ears, as though they couldn’t decide where to land, from which flower to drink first.

The bond came alive between them, two rivers churning and raw and unfettered, propelled by purpose, by design, to the inevitable confluence where they became one, inseparable, and there was no telling now, which was which... but there was no need to know.

_Mine, yours, so precious, my love, beloved, yes, always, now._

The Force _sang_ , chords of shine and shadow in equal measure, as a symphony of light and dark, past and future, entwined around them.

_______________________


	5. Chapter 5

Ben awoke on his last morning on Ahch-To to porg feathers tickling his ear. Rey was curled against him, still asleep, while Gus perched between them, king of his hill. He _chirruped_ , subdued, a question in his dark eyes, and Ben understood. He reached out and scratched the little bird’s head.

“Yep. You’ve been replaced,” he said quietly.

Gus looked at Rey solemnly, then back to Ben.

“I know,” Ben said. “I can hardly believe it either.”

Rey stirred, blinking in the bright sunlight streaming through the cracks in the hut, and smiled at the sight of Gus, who still regarded her solemnly.

“Hello. Where’s your new friends?” She asked, her voice scratchy with sleep but so, _so_ warm.

_Grrrup_ Gus nearly purred, unmistakably mournful.

“Oh no, Ben...” Rey laughed desperately, reaching out to smooth Gus’s feathers. “He’s getting to me. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if we...”

“No.” Ben placed a hand on Gus’s head, then gently but firmly pointed him toward the floor. “He’ll be fine. He wasn’t here overnight, so he must’ve found some new friends.”

“Okay,” Rey said, with just an air of resigned disappointment. Then she looked at Ben, a slight frown creasing her brow. “You weren’t awake, were you? The dreams...?”

He smiled then, his heart full. She knew all about him, and still he wasn’t too much for her, she wasn’t scared of him.

“No dreams,” he soothed. “I just...” he looked away from her gaze for a moment. “I didn’t want you to disappear.”

She brought a hand to his face, tracing a sleep-settled crease along the cheek that once held their scar. “I’m not, Ben,” she said firmly. “I won’t. And neither will you.”

“I know.” _I know_. He cleared his throat, his fingers drifting up to brush the backs of his knuckles along her throat. “It’s also... possible that I...” a gleam of mischief came into his eyes. “Couldn’t stop looking at you. That I didn’t want to miss a moment of this.”

He leaned over her now, smoothing sleep-scattered wisps away from her face, and her eyes were green and gold in the morning light, in the dawn of the new day, the first day of the rest of their lives. He kissed her lightly, and she stretched up to meet him, her hands tangling in his hair, pulling him closer, until he groaned and released her all at once, collapsing back beside her on the stone bench that was altogether _too_ narrow, _too_ close. “I made you a promise,” he groused, his eyes trained on the jagged ceiling of the hut, his hands fisting in his own hair. “Not here. Not like this.”

She giggled. “Sorry,” she said demurely, though she sounded anything but. “I guess there’s only one thing left to do, then.”

“What’s that,” he asked, looking at her now, bereft but relieved as she sat up, moved out of reach.

“Leave.”

_________

They took turns washing up outside, and when Rey returned Ben was packing what few belongings he had. The remaining pieces of faded, well-worn clothing were hardly worth the effort, but there was the shaving kit she’d given him when he first arrived... a packet of pens and ink and a sheaf of actual, real _paper_ she’d gifted him more recently... his mother’s lightsaber... all went into a sack they had found on the _Falcon_ the day before.

Rey had spent so many hours here, with Ben, through their bond. She looked around the room, full of excitement, such _joy_ , that well outweighed the melancholy as she took it in one last time, setting it to be cherished in the halls of memory: the mingled smells of peat smoke and the sea and damp linen, the rush of the wind through chinks in the stone walls, the motes drifting in the light that filtered through the damp air, even the soft shuffle of Ben’s feet as he moved across the dirt and flagstone floor. She sighed, content, until her eyes came to rest on an old storage locker emblazoned with the Imperial crest, shoved partway under the stone bench.

“Ben...” she gestured toward it, curious. “What’s this?”

He glanced up, then back again to his packing. “Oh. Right. You can open it.”

She knelt and lifted the heavy lid on the chest to find several volumes of the Jedi texts. “I forgot you had these,” she said softly, remembering those early days after Exegol, discovering what they shared, the miracle of how easily everything passed between them... as natural as breathing.

“Mmhmm.” He hummed noncommittally. “Did you bring the rest of them?”

“I did,” she said, picking up the top book, smoothing her fingers over the worn wooden cover.

“I was wondering, actually,” she said into the silence, “If I should... return them before we leave?” It came out as more of a question than she intended. She knew Ben had... complicated... feelings about the ancient Jedi texts. More toward what they represented, than what they actually contained. But still...

“Return them where?” He scoffed, deliberately avoiding her gaze. “The tree’s burned up.” Though his voice was gruff, affecting scorn, through the bond he wavered, uncertain.

“Right...” she said slowly. She’d seen the remains of the ancient uneti tree, blackened and charred, when she’d fled to the island after Kef Bir. She sat back on the stone floor to think for a moment. Part of her did want to leave them behind. She and Ben were starting something new, something free from the fear of the Dark side that had plagued the late Jedi order... that had so burdened Luke Skywalker, and young Ben Solo. But what she’d read of them herself over the past two years had surprised her. Plenty of mystical mumbo-jumbo, to be sure, but much less... dogma, than she expected. Less doctrine. They were more like... scrapbooks, almost, of Jedi throughout the ages, from the earliest explorers of the Force to Luke himself. History and science lessons alongside personal anecdotes, cosmic origin stories, mystical theorems. And some of it was quite beautiful.

She glanced at Ben, making a decision.

“Well, without the tree for protection, we can’t just leave them out in the salt air,” she said casually. “It would ruin them, break down the paper, run the ink...” she trailed off.

This got his attention, as she’d known it would. For all his apathy about the texts, he _was_ a scholar at heart, and they _were_ historical artifacts of incalculable significance.

He looked at her now, and the suspicion in his eyes bounced off the innocent gleam in hers.

He blinked slowly, then half-shrugged, accepting. “Do whatever you want with them. I got that case off the old TIE, it’s water-tight, climate controlled.” _If you’re going to keep them, do it right._

“Perfect.” She smiled, victorious. “I’ll haul it down to the _Falcon_.”

_______________________

“You know,” Ben mused, lounging in the captain’s chair as they began the belabored process of preparing the _Falcon_ for launch after a day on shutdown, “With that money from Lando, we don't have to stop at a shower head. We could buy a whole new ship. Something sleek, fast... engineered in this decade.”

“Nope.” Rey said from behind him, where she was going through her own startup checks. “No way.”

He sighed, not disappointed in the least. “I guess I should be glad you have such an affinity for old wrecks. It works in my favor.”

She laughed lightly. “Yes, because you’re positively decrepit. So much maintenance...” she rolled her eyes, sitting down slowly in his lap. “I’d better be careful with you then,” she said softly. “Don’t want to... break anything.”

His hands slid around her, fisting in her shirt, his breath hot on her neck as he leaned in, that _need_ tightening around them again.

He took a deep breath, eyes closed. “We better get out of here...”

“Mmm,” she sighed at the rough slide of his jaw across her cheek. “Just get out of my seat, then,” she added breathlessly.

He huffed, his hands wandering, and she shivered as his nose grazed her ear. “Your seat?”

She pulled back, nodding. “Of course, _my seat._ I’m the pilot.”

He narrowed his eyes at her, full of mischief. “You _were_ the pilot...”

“Chewie left her with me!” Rey said indignantly.

“Well, right,” he drawled with a tease in his voice, proceeding with nuzzling his nose along her neck, as if that might _change_ something, as if she might be _swayed_... “Chewie left her with you, but, now I’m here,” he shrugged as if it were obvious.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” She was clearly not backing down. He decided on a tactical shift.

“Why does one person have to be the pilot, anyway? Can’t we just be _co_ -pilots? Who says Chewie wasn’t really the one in charge, all those years... does the seat really matter?”

Rey laughed at that, and Ben knew he was forgiven. “Of course,” she chuckled. “It makes sense now. Poor Chewie... I think we all owe him an apology. I don't know how no one ever noticed.”

Ben laughed, and everything was right in the world.

“Ben...?”

“Mmm,” he murmured into her hair.

“Let’s go home.”

________________________

________________________

“And then you came here!” Beru wiggles in delight, snuggling deeper into her blankets.

“No sissy,” Breha corrects with the righteous indignation manifest only in precocious five-year-old girls. “First they went to N’boo and got mawied.”

“Oh yeah.” Beru accepts her sister’s correction with the ease born of familial repetition, “and then they came here and Daddy built our house and--”

“No! Mama _and_ Daddy built our house, but first they lived on the Fa’con.” Breha, always her mother’s champion, isn’t one to let any detail go uncorrected.

Beru nods at this, satisfied, tucking her blanket under her chin. It’s a familiar story, and Rey often suspects Beru leaves bits out just to grant Breha the pleasure of filling them in. Rey’s heart swells with affection for her girls as she runs her hand across Beru’s forehead, brushing golden strands out of her eyes.

“But I do wish you brought Gus,” Beru adds. “We would have taken good care of him.”

“You would have,” Rey agrees. “But he had his own home, his own family to be with.”

“Mama,” Breha pipes up from her spot in the nest of blankets in the bed the girls share, have shared since they outgrew their crib, as they’ve shared nearly everything, all the way back to her womb. “How did you know, that this was home?”

Rey tilts her head, considering. Though it’s a familiar story, worn soft and comfortable with so many tellings, this is a new question. _How fast they grow._

“Well,” she says slowly, “Queen Sidra told us we could choose anywhere we wanted, for the school, and we visited different places, feeling out the Force in each one.” The girls nod sagely at this. For better or worse, they’re already familiar with the Force. They already know how it feels as it flows through every living thing, how it speaks, if you are quiet enough to listen.

“But how did you know?” Beru echoes her sister’s question. What concerns one inevitably concerns the other.

“That was easy,” Ben’s deep voice chimes in. The girls look up to their father, standing in the doorway, still drying his hands on the towel slung over his shoulder. They are no more startled by his sudden appearance than Rey is. They never are.

“I knew, because your Mama was here.”

Breha frowns under her mop of dark curls, immediately recognizing the inconsistency of that statement. “Daddy. You brought her here. She was with you.”

“Well, sure,” he says, stepping into the room, “although actually _she_ brought _me_.” His eyes shine at Rey. “But what I meant was, the _where_ didn’t really matter, to me. Home is more about the _who_. I knew that wherever she was, that was my home. And it would be yours, someday.”

Beru nods at this, although Rey can tell Breha isn’t quite satisfied. Rey smiles, smoothing wayward wisps from her daughter’s forehead. “Time to sleep, girls.” She huffs lightly, preparing to stand, and Ben extends a hand to help her up from the edge of the bed.

Beru’s tiny hand reaches out to rest on her mother’s belly. The baby stirs within, and Beru’s eyes drift closed as she talks without words to her little brother, and such _tenderness_ , such _love_ swells between them, around them, that Rey’s eyes water. _So much love._

“I think he’s excited to meet you. He’ll be here soon.” Rey whispers gently.

“I know,” Beru mumbles sleepily, settling back into her blankets. “I’ve told him all about us. He knows he’s at home.”

______________________

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you SO MUCH for reading, please let me know if it brought you a smile! We all need all the love and encouragement we can get right now ☺️ 
> 
> ____________________


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